Does anyone else hate seeing photos of themselves?

[carol1234568]

I avoid pictures whenever possible, but was forced to have some taken for work recently.

When I saw the pictures I was horrified. What I saw was obviously me but it wasn't the image of the person I imagine myself to be or the person I see in the mirror even. For the first time in my life I thought I looked old. And chubby. I've definitely gained weight but didn't realise quite how much until I saw these photos.

It's shattered how I feel about myself and I can't help but feel like a frumpy cow.

If I could go the rest of my life with no photos I'd be happy.

I always look AWFUL in pictures. I also do not know how to smile.

I end up doing a chandler type photo face.

I think I have the opposite of body dysmorphia. I look in the mirror and think I look ok and then someone photographs me and I’m like ‘woah Jesus Christ who the fuck is THAT?!’

I am horrendously unphotogenic!! My dh is the opposite - it's like beauty and the beast in reverse!

I look bloody awful in photos. Bloody awful. I am thankful that my husband is of this opinion (and also that I look a hell of a lot better in actuality).....

In real life I'm small and curvy slim, and I'm told I'm pretty. In the mirror I'm mainly happy with what I see face and figure wise. However I tend to look terrible in photos. If lightly hits my face in a certain way (which is most light conditions) my nose looks horrible, my jaw looks big and my eyes small. Occasionally I will take a gorgeous photo but 99.9% of photos look horrible. I now dread having my photo taken. It's making me wonder if I'm actually really unattractive in real life despite what I see in the mirror because I don't understand how I can look so terrible in photos yet fine in a mirror.

I really hope i look better in real life because photos are awful. I have sort of perfected the selfie (used to hate them) so can tolerate some if I have taken them myself. Unfortunately pretty much all photos of me and my fiancé are of us with a different place behind us taken by me.

Meant to say that I also look a bit chunky in photos even though I don't look chunky in real life. I guess it's the way I stand?

my dh was a very keen photographer so I have learned to pose calmly when having my picture taken so that does help massively. We tend to grimace or pull ourselves into odd shapes when we hate having our picture taken which makes the issue all the worse. Looking relaxed immediately makes the face more attractive

I had an odd situation when a colleague was telling me about a photograph which had been taken of me which he went on and on about how lovely it was. He kept saying it was a great picture and how relaxed and happy I looked etc. I eventually saw it and actually felt a bit weepy in disappointment to my eternal shame. I couldn’t imagine how ugly he actually saw me as if he thought that was a lovely photo of me.

Then I got over myself just a bit and accepted that I did look happy and relaxed. Just with a big nose

I have always hated photos of myself and now I am overweight I think I look even worse.

I hated having my photo taken at my wedding. I didn't want a photographer but DH's mum insisted. We said if she was so insistent she could pay, which she did. I think we have look at the wedding album twice in almost 40 years. We don't even know where it is now (in the loft I suspect).

I have been on facebook for about 10 years and have never once posted a photo of myself. Loads of photos of my dogs but none of me. I got accused recently of having a fake facebook account because there was no photos of me!

I have a friend who is very ‘plain’ (for want of a better word) in real life. Just average. I’m photos, no matter how candid, she is absolutely beautiful. Outstanding, Vogue cover model beautiful. No kidding. It’s utterly bizarre. It’s like the camera loves her. I’m ok in real life (also plain I guess), but look heinous in photos. Even good friends have admitted to me that I look dreadful.

I'm absolutely gorgeous (says DH). But for some reason, I look terrible in photos

Weirder still. My passport photo looks terrible yet passport control never seem to do a double take, or 'are you sure this is you?'. They just let me pass

There must be some science to this surely! What makes some people photograph so well?

I am not photogenic. My wedding photographer was amazing but Christ she had a hard job. Hate hate hate photos. I worry I do look like that in real life

My husband also says I’m absolutely gorgeous @gluteustothemaximus 😀 poor blind
,crazy bastards. I see my real self at those dreadful passport scanners and the truth is hard to bear!

I think I'm tolerably OK in real life but I'm just not photogenic. My adult DS though, it's impossible to take a bad photo of him.

Larry that is so me 😂

Don't get me wrong, I don't think I'm anything special at all. But once in a blue moon I ask DH to take my photo if I'm about to go out and have made a real effort. Maybe it's his terrible photography skills but the mirror and the camera ain't singing off the same hymn sheet for me

Urgh I always look so scrunched up and red faced and just unnatural in photos. Hate it. Still always participate just maybe don't look at them much afterwards. The worst one was when I had a pic with Sara Pascoe after a show and she was slim and wonderful looking and I look like a hot sweaty chubby Uber fan. The shame. I really wanted to show everyone the photo too!

Yep!!! Same as said look in mirror think okay look quite.. Take a photo and it's wtf why is my face doing that hahaha. Thata why find a nice light first. Or make it black and white.

At 38 I've realised my left side is my good side I look shit from the right

I look hideous in photographs and will actively avoid having my photo taken. Even at my wedding the photographer was only allowed to take a couple of photos of me.

I look so ugly and I’m just so self conscious.

oh God - my nose on camera .
admittedly it is a biggish nose, but fairly normal Barbra Streisand/Princess Diana big. In photos I'm Cyrano De Bergerac.

I am awful, horrendous, used to look ok 20 years ago, but not now. I envy photogenic people.

I despise photos of myself. I also hate looking in a full length mirror.

On my driving licence photo I look as though I shouldn't be let out alone, much less to be in charge of a car.

Me too. Depressingly awful every single one of them.

Yes. I'm always rounder and shinier